Machine for covering handbag frames



Oct. 2, 1951 J. A. NETZ I MACHINE FOR COVERING HANDBAG FRAMES 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 11, 1948 HTTOIPNEYS J. A. NETZ I MACHINE FOR COVERING HANDBAG FRAMES Filed Sept. 11, 1948- Oct. 2, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 M M/CM/ 6 TTG/YNEYS Oct. 2, 1951 J. A. NETZ MACHINE FOR COVERING HANDBAG FRAMES 4 Sheets-Slieet 5 Filed Sept. 11, 1948 ,y AM 1 INVENTOR. Johann fl ll/eiz BY M M /Cmw Patented Oct. 2, 1951 MACHINE FOR COVERING HANDBAG FRAMES Johann Adam Netz, Batavia, N. Y., assignor to Lanca Handbags Corporation, New York, N. Y., a corporation of Delaware Application September 11, 1948, Serial No. 48352 6 Claims.

This invention relates to a structurally and functionally improved machine for covering the frames of handbags and also aims to teach a novel method whereby such covering may be effected.

It is an object of the invention to teach a method of covering the frames of receptacles and particularly ladies handbags which method may be economically and expeditiously practiced by means of relatively unskilled labor to produce a finished product of pleasing appearance which product may be placed upon the market for a relatively nominal figure.

A further object is that of providing a machine by means of which the method may be practiced and which machine will include relatively few parts, each individually simple and rugged in construction, such parts operating over long periods of time with freedom from all difficulties.

With these and other objects in mind reference is had to the attached sheet of drawings illustrating one practice embodiment of the invention and in which:

Fig. 1 is a bottom plan view of the upper press member and the cams for actuating the side wall folding means;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the frame receiving bed and the means for holding the covering material about side walls of the frame;

Fig. 3 is a front elevation, in section on lines 3-3 of Fig. 2, showing the invention as mounted on a conventional plunger press or the like;

Fig. 4 is a side elevation of the apparatus, in section on lines 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a side elevation, in section on lines 55 of Fig. 2, of one of the folders, said figure illustrating the folder in retracted position, and the frame covering material on the base plate before the frame has been pressed thereon;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken along the lines 66 and in the direction of the arrows as indicated in Fig. 2. As such it is similar toFig. 5, but shows, in section, a handbag frame positioned within the accommodating channel of the base plate;

Fig. 7 shows the descent of the upper press member to fold one portion of the covering material into position on a Wall of the handbag frame Fig. 8 shows the completion of the operating stroke of the press member;

Fig. 9 shows the advance of one of the folder members toward the upstanding portion of the covering material;

Fig. 10 shows the completion of the stroke of the folder of Fig. 9, showing the completion of the frame covering operation; and

Fig. 11 shows, in vertical section, a typical inverted handbag frame which has been covered and to which the bag forming material has been attached.

Referring to the drawings, Fig. 11 shows a handbag frame F to which has been applied a covering material C. As is apparent, the inverted frame shown in the figure is of substantially rectangular cross section to which the material of the bag B is attached by folding an end of said material about a wall of the frame and then folding the Wall inwardly tothe final rectangular shape. As is conventional, the frame comprises two symmetrical hinge members which may be of any shape. Illustratively the frame is polygonal.

Fig. 2 shows the lower assembly of the device, in which a bed plate Iil carries the respective plates H and H2, which define a groove or channel l3 corresponding to the shape of one half of the handbag frame.

An extension 14 of plate it) serves to support the other half of the frame; suitable pockets it being provided to accommodate the hinges, and the guide walls it steadying such other frame half while the first half of it is being operated upon. Associated with each of the legs of the groove l3 are slidably mounted folders it which will later be more particularly described. Said folders are of identical construction, but of different size according to the individual frame, and they have therefore been given the same reference character.

A plate or other rigid structural element is is suitably secured to the plunger E9 of a press P or proper stroke and power. Said plate provides for the resilient support of a press plate 2d and fixed cams 2|.

Press plate 2i] lays the cover material C on the inner leg F of the frame F (see Figs. '1 and 8) and has the shape and size substantially of the outer margin of the groove 53. Cams 2i actuate the folders ll and are arranged symmetrically about the press plate, as shown in Fig. 1.

The press plate 2!) is carried at the ends of suitable guide rods 22 which are freely vertically movable in the plate l8 within the limits afforded by a chamber 23 in the press head. The springs 24 normally urge the press plate downwardly. As desired, the plate 12 may have guide pins 235 for cooperation with holes 28 in the press plate 25.

As is indicated in Figs. 3 and 4, the plate 58 is slidably mounted in the table 2'17 of the press. 'io this end the plate is is provided with rails 22'; which ride in suitable guides in the press table. The extensionlll of the plate lfi has a suitable handle 29 which the press operator may grasp to draw the plate l and its thereon supported devices forwardly out of the zone of operation of the press for the purpose of placing the covering material and the handbag frame thereon.

The covering material is adhesively secured to the frame and said material may be sheets of thermoplastic material or sheets of material provided with a heat softening adhesive coating, preferably the latter. Therefore there is provided beneath the plate It any-suitable heating means such as the battery of electric heatingelements 30 insulatedly supported within the press P. By conventional means said elements may be maintained at a controlled temperature so as to heat the plate In and its thereon positioned cover material to the necessarytemperature forsoftening the thermoplastic material to anadhesive state.

Each folder comprises aframe 33 which, (see Fig. 2), is substantially. ui's'haped tostraddle a guide block 34 fixed tdtheplate lil. Mutually parallel slots 35 near theside's ofsa'i'clfframe provide guideways with which cooperate the fixed posts 36. The respective frames 33a're"thereby accurately g'uided'for'slidable movement relative to the fram'e r'e'ceiving groove |3. A'yoke 31 fixed to frame 33 provides an anchorage for the compression springs 38 which as will be'obvious bear against posts 36 'so as to urge theframe 33 away from the groove l3. A cap 40 carried by post provides an upper 'retai'ningmember for the frame 33. Suitably'aifixed to'each frame, and straddling the cap 40,'see"F-ig. 4,15 a post or block 4| having an upper camface which cooperates with an adjacent cam 2| of the upper press unit. It will, therefore, be apparent that as'the upper press unit descends a cam 2| will, upon engagement with an adjajcent carnipost 4|, urge said post and its thereto affixedfr'ame 33 inwardly toward the groove l3.

Referring'now to'Fig. 5, it will benoted that the front of the'frame 33 has a blade-like member 42 which ridesupon the surface of the plate Suitably affixed to theplate is a support 43. As is apparent in Fig. 5, theedge of the blade 42 and the support 43'maintain the frame 33 in position normally parallel to the plate H. A compression spring 45" (Fig. 6), suitably supported against plate lfland'bearing against the upper wall of a slot 41 provided in the frame 33, tends to rock the frame counterclockwise about the support 43 as a pivot. It will, of course, be apparent that the caps 40 prevent such movement above the horizontal.

In the operation of the device the operator withdraws the plate ID from the press as indicated in dot-dash lines in Fig. 4 and places pieces of covering material C inposition over the legs of the groove l3, as indicated in Fig. 5. Depending upon the actualshape of theframe F, the covering material 'may be in a single piece or such plurality of pieces asmay be necessary. The c erator then places the frame F upon the cover strip C and presses the frame downwardly into the groove, as shown in Fig. dwhereupon the covering material will have upwardly extending leg portions approximately as illustrated. It is assumed that the operator will have warmed up the plate [0 by means of the heating coils prior to the first operation so that the plate will have a suificient temperature to plasticise the covering material or the adhesive thereof. The plate I0 is then returned to position beneath the head of the press and through any conventional means (not shown) the press head is caused to descend to bring the plate 20 into contact with the cover material so as to fold the same against the wall F of the frame as shown in Fig. 7. During these movements of the mechanism the covering strip will not be displaced because of the adhesion and contact between the parts. As the plate comes down to home position as shown in Fig. 8, the frame leg is bent slightly downwardly and the resistance ofiered thereby insures that the covering 'material is tightly adhered to the frame portion.

As will also be apparent as a consequence of such bending, the covering material is slightly tensioned or stretched to assure that it lies properly disposed with respect to the frame surface. As the press head continues downward movement, the springs 24 compress, exerting resilient pressure on the frame and causing good adhesion of the covering material with the frame structure at the bottom of the groove. In a relatively short time, the cam members 2| will each engage the cam posts 4| of the folders H to begin the inward drive of the folders as suggested in Fig. 9. It will be noted from this figure that the slopes of the cams 2| and 4| are not parallel and there is therefore a tendency of the cam 2 l to rotate the plate 33 clockwise about the support 43 as a pivot, said rotation being prevented by the blade 42. However, as the blade 42 engages with and passes across the adjacent portion of the cover C, the blade will no longer be supported byplate |2 and the cam 2| will causethe frame 33 to rotate and the blade 42 to descend sharply into thechannel like frame structure to fold the cover mate rial thereabout, as shown in Fig. 10.

The timed relationship of operation of Y the press plate 20 and folders is a valuable feature. The press plate, engaging the frame first and releasing last, holds the frame securely against side thrust of the folders or any tendency of the latter to lift the frame as they disengage therefrom. Therefore, although it is obvious that other driving means may be employed to reciprocate the frames, the association of the cams 2| and 4| accomplishes the timed operation in a simple and effective manner.

The return movement of the press head will withdraw the cams 2 and as said cams disengage from the respective frame cams 4| the springs 38 will react to draw the edge ofblade- 42 against the folded cover portion C to press the same against the frame. Springs 45 Will thereafter be effective to rotate'frames 33 toreturn them to parallelism in which the lower edge of the blade 42 is at the level of the surface of the plate l2. It will be obvious therefore that the depth of the channels l3 and the thickness of the covering material C is such that thematerial may be folded over the frame as shown in Fig. l0-with-out providing a bump or obstructionwhich rises above the surface of the plate |'|.--a-lthough there is sufficient freedom of movement in the frames to make small rises orobstructions unimportant. As the press head continues to rise the respective springs 38 expand to move-the frames 33 away from the channels l3 and eventually said frames return to their normal retracted position. The plate 20 will be lifted, of course, above the covered frame at the engagement of plate IS with the heads of the posts 22.

The operator may thenwithdraw the plate if] from the press and manually or by conventional air ejection means (not shown) remove. the covered frame portion from; the apparatus. "The frame may then be turned s'o' thatthe'uncovered portion thereof is in position to be operated upon in the next press operation.

Thus, among others, the several objects of the invention as specifically afore noted are achieved. Obviously, numerous changes in construction and rearrangements of the parts might be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined by the claims. It will also be obvious that the steps of the method may be varied in numerous particulars without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. A machine for folding sheet material into contact with the walls of a handbag frame having a channel-like structure, comprising a plate having a groove to receive said frame with its spaced wall portions extending upwardly and said sheet material partially folded thereabout, said groove being of such depth that a wall of the frame which is to be covered is below the surface of the plate, and the covering material to be folded about such wall portion projects above the plate; folder means slibably mounted on said plate for movement in the direction of, and away from, said projecting cover material, said means being supported above said plate by a downwardly projecting wall riding upon said plate, said wall being engageable with said projecting cover material; driver means releasably engaging with said folder means for advancing said folder means and therewith associated wall into contact with and across said covering material until said wall member is in the channel area of said frames and thus unsupported by said plate; means for rotating said folder means to cause its said wall to drive said covering material downwardly into adjacency with said wall portion of said frame; and means for moving said folder means in reverse direction to cause a surface of its said wall to press said covering material into contact with a surface of said frame wall.

2. A machine for folding sheet material into contact with the walls of a handbag frame having a channel-like structure, comprising a plate having a groove to receive said frame with its spaced wall portions extending upwardly and said sheet material partially folded thereabout, said groove being of such depth that a wall of the frame which is to be covered is below the surface of the plate, and the covering material to be folded about such wall portion projects above the plate; folder means slidably mounted on said plate for movement in the direction of, and away from, said projecting cover material, said means being supported above said plate by a downwardly projecting wall riding upon said plate, said wall being engageable with said projecting cover material; driver means releasably engaging with said folder means for advancing said folder means and therewith associated wall into contact with and across said covering material until said wall member is in the channel area of said frames and thus unsupported by said plate; means, including said driver means for rotating said folder means to cause its said wall to drive said covering material downwardly into adjacency with said wall portion of said frame; and means for moving saidfolder means in reverse direction to cause a surface of its said wall to press said covering material into contact with a surface of said frame wall.

3. A machine for folding sheet material into contact with the walls of a handbag frame having a channel-like structure, comprising a plate having a groove to receive said frame with its spaced wall portions extending upwardly and said sheet material partially folded thereabout, said groove being of such depth that a wall of the frame which is to be covered is below the surface of the plate, and the covering material to be folded about such wall portion rojects above the plate; folder means slidably mounted on said plate for movement in the direction of, and away from, said projecting cover material, said means being supported above said plate by a downwardly projecting wall riding upon said plate, said wall being engageable with said projecting cover material; driver means releasably engaging with said folder means for advancing said folder means and therewith associated wall into contact with and across said covering material until said wall member is in the channel area of said frames and thus unsupported by said plate; means, including said driver means for rotating said folder means to cause its said wall to drive said covering material downwardly into adjacency with said wall portion of said frame; and means for moving said folder means in reverse direction to cause a surface of its said wall to press said covering material into contact with a surface of said frame Wall, and spring means to return said folder means wall to the level of the plate and to retract said folder means from said frame upon the release of the said drive means.

4. A machine for folding flexible sheet material into contact with a wall of a handbag frame having a channel-like structure, comprising a press having a rigid table and a head member supported for reciprocation with respect thereto; means for reciprocating said head member; a plate supported by said press table in the path of movement of said press head, said plate having means defining a groove to receive said frame with its said wall portion extending upwardly to a point below the level of said plate, the sheet material being placed against said wall and projecting upwardly above the surface of said plate; a folder unit slidably mounted on said plate for guided movement in the direction of, and away from, said projecting material, said folder unit being supported above said plate by a downwardly projecting wall riding thereupon, said wall being engageable with said material; a cam on said folder unit, and a cam on said press head, said cams cooperating, when said press head is moved toward said folder unit, to advance said folder unit into contact with and drive the wall thereof across said sheet material, said cams being so arranged that the folder unit is urged into rotation toward said plate during its advance toward said material, whereby when the wall of said folder unit reaches the channel portion of said frame and is thus unsupported, the unit will rotate downwardly to cause the wall thereof to fold the material against the wall of the frame; spring means effective upon retraction of said press head to press said frame unit wall against the material; spring means to rotats the folder unit upwardly to raise its said wall to the level of the plate; and spring means for propelling said unit away from said frame. 5. A machin for folding flexible sheet material into contact with the walls of a handbag frame having a channel-like structure having a vertical and an angularly extending wall, comprising a press having a rigid table and a head member supported for reciprocation with respect thereto; means for reciprocating said head member; a plate supported by said press table in the path of movement of said press head, said: platehaving said frame upon movement of said press-head towardsaid plateya folder unit slidably mounted, onsaid plate for guided movement in the direction of, or away from,'said other upwardly extending portion ofmaterial, said folder unitbeing supported abovesaid plate by a downwardly projectingwall riding thereupon, said wall being:

engageable with said material; a cam on said folder unit and a cam onsaid press head, said cams cooperating during operation of said press head toward the said folder unit, butsubsequent to the engagement of said press memberwith' said sheet material t advance said folder unit into contact with and across said sheet material; said cams being so arranged that thefolder unit is urged into rotation against said plateduring its advance toward said'material, whereby when 1 the wall of said folder unit advances beyond the plate and is no longer supported thereby the unit will rotate downwardly to cause the wall thereof to fold the material against the wall of the frame; and means effective upon the retrac tion of said press head to withdraw the folder unit from said frame.

6. A machine for covering the channelled frame members of handbags, said machine including in combination'a bedformed'with a groove to receive the base portions of a channel member and covering strip thereforwith parts of both said strip and member extending from within said groov above the surface of said bed, a folder laterally movable over the bed surface and into the area of said groove to cause an extended strip portion to be folded over an adjacent edge of said member, a support extending upwardly from said bed and slidably engaged by said folder, a spring interposed between said body and folder to normally maintain the latter in a path of movement parallel to the upper face of said body, a

part carried by the outer end of said folder and means for-laterally shifting-said folder over said body and urging the same in a manner such that'said folder'will fulcrum with respect to said support to cause said part to be projected downwardly into the channel of said member andcause the folded strip portion to be disposed adjacent the inner face of said channel member.

J OHANN ADAM NETZ.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,474,882 Baumgarten Nov. 20, 1923 1,489,526 Elenderson Apr. 8, 1924 1,532,318 Kisinger Apr. '7, 1925 1,812,045 Groehn June 30, 1931 2,046,955 Lindemnan July 7, 1936 2,106,408 Hiering Jan. 25, 1938 2,173,045 Sirois Sept. 12, 1939 2,268,333 Hiering Dec. 30, 1941 2,285,053 Rojas June 2, 1942 

